Bushfire disaster: Order to flee but holiday-makers stay put

Holiday-makers in bushfire-­ravaged eastern Victoria stayed put on Sunday night, ­ignoring an unprecedented ­urgent call to evacuate.

Police control traffic as over 9000 campers are evacuated from the Falls Music Festival in Lorne. Picture: Jason Edwards

Holiday-makers in bushfire-­ravaged eastern Victoria were staying put on Sunday night, ­ignoring an unprecedented ­urgent call to evacuate as extreme weather threatens to fan blazes and block off the only remaining road into the region.

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While large parts of the country are on high bushfire alert, visitors to East Gippsland, including the seaside town of Lakes Entrance where the population has swelled to 30,000 over the holidays, were advised on Sunday to leave immediately. More than 45,000 residents across the ­region were also ­advised to leave by mid-morning on Monday.

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With forecast temperatures upwards of 40C, with strong winds and thunderstorms, Emergency Management Commissioner Andrew Crisp said there was a serious risk that fires burning north of Lakes Entrance would affect the Princes Highway, leading to the closure of the only main road into the far-east of the state.

Mr Crisp said the threat to the region could not be overstated and there was no guarantee that fire brigades would be able to cover all fires if there was a further outbreak. He said the weather conditions could also affect the ability to get fire-fighting aircraft airborne. “It’s going to be hot, it’s going to be dry, it’s going to be windy,” he said at State Control Centre on Sunday.

Aerial image of bushfires at Cabbage Tree Creek, East Gippsland, 29 Dec 2019. Picture: DELWP Gippsland

“If you’re planning on visiting East Gippsland … don’t do it. If you’re already visiting East Gippsland, you need to leave the area today. It is not possible to provide support and aid to all the visitors currently in the East Gippsland region, and if the Princes Highway is impacted, you may not be able to leave for sometime.”

While Mr Crisp singled out Lakes Entrance during his briefing, there was some confusion as to whether warnings applied to the town.

Iain Podd and Tania Snell and their two children are staying at the Bairnsdale Riverside Holiday Park just on the edge of the fire-affected area. Mr Podd said he had a close eye on the weather warnings ahead of “what they’re telling us will be a scorcher of a day”.

“We know that some people have left, others are staying,” he said. “The receptionist here has told us that the direction of the wind means we won’t be affected. But of course we will move on if the situation changes.”

Iain Podd and Tania Snell with children Callum and Ellowyn at their campsite at NRMA Bairnsdale riverside holiday park. Picture: Sean Jackson

The family is on a driving holiday from Sydney, headed towards Tasmania, and passed by several fires on their journey south.

At 5pm on Sunday only six out of the 67 groups staying at the Big 4 Whiters Holiday Village had checked out, according to manager Michael Smits, with many people opting to “wait and see what happens”. “There’s certainly some concern, but according to the regular emails that we’ve ­received, people staying in Lakes Entrance township itself have not been asked to leave,” Mr Smits said.

“Many people are saying that they’re going to hang about town, go to a cafe, perhaps go to the beach or wander up and down The Esplanade. There’s certainly no panic.”

Lake Caravilla holiday park manager Danny Smethurst said a few visitors were leaving but most were going to check conditions in the morning before making a ­decision. “To be honest 60 per cent of people wouldn’t know there’s fire going on. You can’t really see it,” he said.

Mr Crisp declined to comment further but an Emergency Management Victoria spokeswoman confirmed that more than 100,000 text messages to people in the area had been issued, warning of the dangerous conditions.

Unlike in NSW, Victoria’s emergency authorities have no powers to forcibly remove people. However, Parks Victoria is planning to close all parks in the area on Monday. There are more than a dozen active warnings for the ­region, with out-of-control fires stretching from Wandiligong, south of Bright in the state’s northeast, to Wingan River in the east. Those in Mallacoota, east of the Wingan River fire, have been told it is too late for them to leave.

A refuge centre has been set up at Lakes Entrance for residents who do not have the option to leave. Other refuges have been ­established at Bairnsdale, Omeo and Delegate. 

The Bureau of Meteorology has also issued severe warnings for Victoria’s southwest and central regions, while parts of NSW and the ACT are on high-alert as conditions are expected to ­deteriorate this week amid rising temperatures and dry winds.

A precautionary fire engine at the cancelled Falls Festival site. Picture: Alan Barber

More than 80 fires were burning in NSW on Sunday morning with 36 not contained. About 2000 firefighters were in the field preparing for worsening condition. Fire weather warnings are also in place in parts of South Australia and Tasmania.

Bushfire concerns were behind the shock decision by the organisers of the Falls Festival at Lorne to cancel the annual four-day event in Victoria’s Otway Ranges.

More than 9000 revellers were already camped on site, having seen John Farnham perform on Saturday night. They were ­ordered to get out by 9am on Monday due to the elevated safety risk.

“It is with a heavy heart we have had to cancel the remaining days of The Falls Festival in Lorne due to the predicted extreme weather conditions forecast for Monday … creating a risk to health and safety due to potential fires, smoke, severe winds and tree hazards,” the festival organiser said in a statement.

“After consultation with local and regional fire authorities and other emergency stakeholders, it is clear that we have no other ­option.

“While conditions are fine at time of writing, we are taking the opportunity to move everyone offsite safely and in good time.”

While the event has previously been relocated due to fire risks, this is the first time it has been cancelled. This year’s line-up was to have included US singer-songwriter Halsey, Vampire Weekend, Peking Duk and Of Monsters and Men. Mr Crisp confirmed that fire authorities had met the festival organisers, who understood that there was no way of mitigating the risks posed to festival-goers so the decision was made to cancel.

He said fortunately the vast majority of people listened to the experts’ advice and heeded warnings to leave areas at risk.

“There’s potential if people are going to stay in parks, in forests, they are well and truly risking their lives,” Mr Crisp said.

Bureau of Meteorology senior forecaster Kevin Parkyn said Monday was shaping up to be “a significant fire weather day in Victoria’s history”, with temperatures in excess of 40C expected, including 43C for Melbourne and 44C for Mildura and Swan Hill.